ZDF Enterprises launches UFA FICTION production Ku'damm 56 on the occasion of MIPCOM

ZDF Enterprises is to unveil the three-part event movie ‘Ku'damm 56’ (3x90') to international customers and partners on the occasion of MIPCOM 2015.

‘Ku'damm 56’ is a family story about the awakening of young people in the 1950s, commissioned by ZDF and produced by UFA FICTION with renowned producers Nico Hofmann and Benjamin Benedict (‘Generation War’, ‘Deutschland 83’) at the helm. The responsible editors at ZDF include Heike Hempel, Anna Bütow and Bastian Wagner. The series is shot in Berlin with completion scheduled for mid-October 2015, and with an anticipated broadcast date for the three-parter in spring 2016. ZDF Enterprises is responsible for worldwide sales.

The backdrop to the story is the Berlin dance school 'Galant' in the 1950s: it is here where the battle between prudery and emancipation is fought, this is where worlds collide. The new ZDF three-parter tells the story of this special chapter in the age of the German economic miracle. Dance school proprietor Caterina Schöllack (Claudia Michelsen) is determined that her three daughters should take their place in hierarchical society. Two of her daughters appear to be amenable to that desire: Helga (Maria Ehrich) has made what seems to be a stunning match and is set to marry lawyer Wolfgang von Boost (August Wittgenstein), and nurse Eva (Emilia Schüle) is doing everything she can to win the hand of her boss, Professor Fassbender (Heino Ferch), in marriage. This leaves only Monika (Sonja Gerhardt), the middle, unloved daughter, who, although desperate for the approval of her strict mother, is resisting the preordained path - and then she discovers rock 'n' roll. Monika's story and that of her two sisters is illustrative of numerous biographies of an age in which the lives of many women were defined by their position at the side of a husband. Any yet, at the same time, the women of this generation were motivated by the search for a new female identity and the nascent desire for equality.

Heike Hempel, ZDF chief editor in charge of the project explains: "’Ku'damm 56’ marks the continuation of our tradition of retelling contemporary events using contemporary voices. We’re very proud that Annette Hess, one of the most renowned scriptwriters in Germany, agreed to our request to write the story of a conservative mother and her three marriageable daughters in the 1950s. ‘Ku'damm 56' charts the ruination of a family as it plays out behind a facade of perfection and tells the story of women on their way to self-determined sexuality and equality."

Alexander Coridass, President and COO at ZDF Enterprises adds: "We have worked on a number of projects with Nico Hofmann and Benjamin Benedict and the main editorial team headed by Heike Hempel, and we have always been impressed by the storytelling power and creative daring of all involved. "Ku'damm 56" is another German production that ZDF Enterprises will make an international success.”